System, method, and apparatus for verifying railroad work zone instructions

ABSTRACT

Provided is a computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train. The method includes receiving at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device, generating at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message, transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device, receiving a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device, and enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train in response to receiving the verification. A system and computer program product are also provided.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/406,144, filed Oct. 10, 2016, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to electronic work zone instructions for a railroad and, in one particular embodiment, to a system, method, and apparatus for verifying electronic work zone instructions for a railroad.

2. Technical Considerations

Work Zone Bulletins provide a method for a railroad to inform a locomotive or train of operating rules/limitations for an area of track where personnel and/or equipment may be working on the track (e.g., a “work zone”). This includes information such as where the limits of the work zone are, what speed to proceed through the work zone (once permission is obtained to enter it), and other like information. According to the General Code of Rules (GCOR) and other applicable railroad operating policies, only the employee-in-charge (EIC) is permitted to give permissions and instructions to the locomotive or train crew entering a work zone. Existing systems involve the EIC communicating with a locomotive or train using voice communication transmitted over a radio frequency.

Railroads are looking for methods to move trains efficiently and safely and are moving away from relying on train crews to accurately use voice communication in conjunction with a Positive Train Control (PTC) solution. Currently, a locomotive or train approaches a work zone and radios the EIC of the Work zone for permission to enter and for any instructions as to speed and stops within the work zone controlled by that EIC. The operator of the train presses a button on the cab display unit (CDU) within the locomotive and allows that train to enter, with no ability to electronically verify that the crew actually had permission to enter the work zone.

Accordingly, there is a need to verify that electronic instructions received by the locomotive match those transmitted by the EIC.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, provided is a computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: receiving, by the on-board system of the train, at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification, enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.

In non-limiting embodiments, the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises at least one track diagram and textual instructions. Moreover, generating the at least one visual instruction diagram may comprise: extracting, by the on-board system, a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message; and converting, by the on-board system of the train, the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to the visual instruction diagram.

In non-limiting embodiments, the at least one electronic work zone instruction is received from a back office system, and the back office system receives the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device. Moreover, the back office system may, after receiving the at least one electronic work zone instruction message, extract a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message and transform the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to a track data framework associated with the on-board system of the train.

In non-limiting embodiments, the at least one electronic work zone instruction message may comprise at least one of the following work zone instruction parameters: work zone limits, a work zone speed restriction, a work zone route, or any combination thereof. Moreover, transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device may comprise transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system to a back office system, and transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the back office system to the employee-in-charge device. In some examples, the employee-in-charge device may comprise a handheld or portable computer. Moreover, the method may further comprise requesting, by the on-board system of the train, the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message is transmitted by the employee-in-charge device in response to the request.

According to another non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, provided is a computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: receiving, by the on-board system of the train, at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram or at least one new electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification or the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message: (i) enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train if the verification is received; or (ii) generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one new visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message if the rejection is received.

In non-limiting embodiments, the method further comprises: (a) transmitting the new visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; (b) receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the new visual instruction diagram or at least one new electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device; and (c) in response to receiving the verification or the at least one further electronic work zone instruction message: (i) enforcing the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train if the verification is received; or (ii) generating, by the on-board system of the train, a new visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message. In some examples, the method may further comprise repeating steps (a)-(c) until at least one electronic work zone instruction message is enforced by the on-board system of the train.

According to a further non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, provided is a system for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: (a) an on-board control system arranged on at least one locomotive of a train, the on-board control system comprising at least one processor programmed or configured to: (i) receive at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; (ii) generate a visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; (iii) transmit the visual instruction diagram to the employee-in-charge device; (iv) receive, by the on-board system of the train, a verification or a rejection of the visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and (v) in response to receiving a verification, enforce the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.

In non-limiting embodiments, the system may further comprise the employee-in-charge device comprising at least one portable computing device including at least one processor programmed or configured to: (i) receive user input; (ii) generate the work zone instruction message based on the user input; (iii) receive the visual instruction diagram from the on-board control system; (iv) display the visual instruction diagram; and (v) receive the approval or the rejection from the user.

In some non-limiting examples, the at least one visual instruction diagram may comprise at least one track diagram and textual instructions. Further, the on-board control system may be programmed or configured to: extract a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message; and generate the at least one visual instruction diagram by converting the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to the at least one visual instruction diagram.

In non-limiting embodiments, the at least one electronic work zone instruction is received from a back office system, and the back office system receives the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device. In some examples, the back office system, after receiving the at least one electronic work zone instruction message, extracts a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message and transforms the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to a track data framework associated with the on-board system of the train.

In non-limiting embodiments of the system, the at least one electronic work zone instruction message may comprise at least one of the following work zone instruction parameters: work zone limits, a work zone speed restriction, a work zone route, or any combination thereof. Moreover, the on-board control system may transmit the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device by transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system to a back office system, and transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the back office system to the employee-in-charge device. In some examples, the employee-in-charge device may comprise a handheld or portable computer. Moreover, the on-board computer may be programmed or configured to request the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device, and the at least one electronic work zone instruction message may be transmitted by the employee-in-charge device in response to the request.

According to a further non-limiting embodiment, provided is a computer program product for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions that, when executed by the on-board system of the train, cause the on-board system to: receive at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generate at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmit the at least one visual instruction diagram to the employee-in-charge device; receive a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification, enforce at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.

Further embodiments or aspects are set forth in the following numbered clauses:

Clause 1: A computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: receiving, by the on-board system of the train, at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification, enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.

Clause 2: The computer-implemented method of clause 1, wherein the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises at least one track diagram and textual instructions.

Clause 3: The computer-implemented method of clauses 1 or 2, wherein generating the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises: extracting, by the on-board system, a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message; and converting, by the on-board system of the train, the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to the visual instruction diagram.

Clause 4: The computer-implemented method of any of clauses 1-3, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction is received from a back office system, and wherein the back office system receives the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device.

Clause 5: The computer-implemented method of any of clauses 1-4, wherein the back office system, after receiving the at least one electronic work zone instruction message, extracts a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message and transforms the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to a track data framework associated with the on-board system of the train.

Clause 6: The computer-implemented method of any of clauses 1-5, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message comprises at least one of the following work zone instruction parameters: a work zone limit, a work zone speed restriction, a work zone route, or any combination thereof.

Clause 7: The computer-implemented method of any of clauses 1-6, wherein transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device comprises transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system to a back office system, and transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the back office system to the employee-in-charge device.

Clause 8: The computer-implemented method of any of clauses 1-7, wherein the employee-in-charge device comprises a handheld or portable computer.

Clause 9: The computer-implemented method of any of clauses 1-8, further comprising requesting, by the on-board system of the train, the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message is transmitted by the employee-in-charge device in response to the request.

Clause 10: A computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: receiving, by the on-board system of the train, at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram or at least one new electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification or the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message: (i) enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train if the verification is received; or (ii) generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one new visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message if the rejection is received.

Clause 11: The computer-implemented method of clause 10, wherein the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message is received, the method further comprising: (a) transmitting the new visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; (b) receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the new visual instruction diagram or at least one new electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device; and (c) in response to receiving the verification or the at least one further electronic work zone instruction message: (i) enforcing the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train if the verification is received; or (ii) generating, by the on-board system of the train, a new visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message.

Clause 12: The computer-implemented method of clauses 10 or 11, further comprising repeating steps (a)-(c) until at least one electronic work zone instruction message is enforced by the on-board system of the train.

Clause 13: A system for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: (a) an on-board control system arranged on at least one locomotive of a train, the on-board control system comprising at least one processor programmed or configured to: (i) receive at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; (ii) generate a visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; (iii) transmit the visual instruction diagram to the employee-in-charge device; (iv) receive, by the on-board system of the train, a verification or a rejection of the visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and (v) in response to receiving a verification, enforce the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.

Clause 14: The system of clause 13, further comprising: (b) the employee-in-charge device comprising at least one portable computing device including at least one processor programmed or configured to: (i) receive user input; (ii) generate the work zone instruction message based on the user input; (iii) receive the visual instruction diagram from the on-board control system; (iv) display the visual instruction diagram; and (v) receive the approval or the rejection.

Clause 15: The system of clauses 13 or 14, wherein the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises at least one track diagram and textual instructions.

Clause 16 The system of any of clauses 13-15 wherein the on-board control system is further programmed or configured to: extract a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message; and generate the at least one visual instruction diagram by converting the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to the at least one visual instruction diagram.

Clause 17: The system of any of clauses 13-16, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction is received from a back office system, and wherein the back office system receives the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device.

Clause 18: The system of any of clauses 13-17, wherein the back office system, after receiving the at least one electronic work zone instruction message, extracts a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message and transforms the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to a track data framework associated with the on-board system of the train.

Clause 19: The system of any of clauses 13-18, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message comprises at least one of the following work zone instruction parameters: a work zone limit, a work zone speed restriction, a work zone route, or any combination thereof.

Clause 20: The system of any of clauses 13-19, wherein the at least one visual instruction diagram is transmitted from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device by transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system to a back office system, and transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the back office system to the employee-in-charge device.

Clause 21: The system of any of clauses 13-20, wherein the employee-in-charge device comprises a handheld or portable computer.

Clause 22: The system of any of clauses 13-21, wherein the on-board control system is further programmed or configured to request the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message is transmitted by the employee-in-charge device in response to the request.

Clause 23: A computer program product for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions that, when executed by the on-board system of the train, cause the on-board system to: receive at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generate at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmit the at least one visual instruction diagram to the employee-in-charge device; receive a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification, enforce at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.

These and other features and characteristics of the present invention, as well as the methods of operation and functions of the related elements of structures and the combination of parts and economies of manufacture, will become more apparent upon consideration of the following description and the appended claims with reference to the accompanying drawings, all of which form a part of this specification, wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts in the various figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. As used in the specification and the claims, the singular form of “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Additional advantages and details of the invention are explained in greater detail below with reference to the exemplary embodiments that are illustrated in the accompanying schematic figures, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for verifying railroad work zone instructions according to the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is another schematic diagram of a system for verifying railroad work zone instructions according to the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2B is a further schematic diagram of a system for verifying railroad work zone instructions of a command message according to the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is a sequence diagram of a method for verifying railroad work zone instructions according to the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 3B is another sequence diagram of a method for verifying railroad work zone instructions according to the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is an example visual diagram according to the principles of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a method of verifying railroad work zone instructions according to the principles of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

For purposes of the description hereinafter, the terms “end,” “upper,” “lower,” “right,” “left,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” “top,” “bottom,” “lateral,” “longitudinal,” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the invention as it is oriented in the drawing figures. However, it is to be understood that the invention may assume various alternative variations and step sequences, except where expressly specified to the contrary. It is also to be understood that the specific devices and processes illustrated in the attached drawings, and described in the following specification, are simply exemplary embodiments or aspects of the invention. Hence, specific dimensions and other physical characteristics related to the embodiments or aspects disclosed herein are not to be considered as limiting.

As used herein, the terms “communication” and “communicate” refer to the receipt or transfer of one or more signals, messages, commands, or other type of data. For one unit or component to be in communication with another unit or component means that the one unit or component is able to directly or indirectly receive data from and/or transmit data to the other unit or component. This can refer to a direct or indirect connection that may be wired and/or wireless in nature. Additionally, two units or components may be in communication with each other even though the data transmitted may be modified, processed, and/or routed between the first and second unit or component. For example, a first unit may be in communication with a second unit even though the first unit passively receives data and does not actively transmit data to the second unit. As another example, a first unit may be in communication with a second unit if an intermediary unit processes data from one unit and transmits processed data to the second unit. It will be appreciated that numerous other arrangements are possible.

According to a preferred and non-limiting embodiment of the present invention, a system for verifying railroad work zone instructions is provided. Non-limiting embodiments of the system provide for a closed-loop verification process to allow for an employee-in-charge (EIC) controlling a work zone to verify that the locomotive and/or train crew received the correct work zone instructions. The EIC may be one or more individuals responsible for train admission and movement in a designated work zone where maintenance is being performed on track segments, signaling systems, switches, and/or other like railroad components. The EIC, through an EIC device, transmits one or more work zone instruction messages to the on-board system of a locomotive, either directly or indirectly through a back office segment (e.g., back office system) (BOS). The on-board system receives the work zone instruction message(s), analyzes the data stored therein, and generates a visual diagram and/or textual instructions based on the work zone instruction message(s). The on-board system then transmits the visual diagram and/or textual instructions back to the EIC device, either directly or indirectly through a BOS. The EIC is then enabled to, through the EIC device, approve or reject the visual diagram and/or textual instructions. If the visual diagram and/or textual instructions are approved, indicating a match with the intended instructions, an approval signal is transmitted to the on-board system and the work zone instructions are enforced. If the visual diagram and/or textual instructions are rejected by the EIC, one or more new work zone instruction messages are transmitted to the on-board system of the train and the process is repeated until instructions are ultimately enforced.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system 1000 for verifying railroad work zone instructions according to a preferred and non-limiting embodiment. The system 1000 includes a locomotive 100 of a train that includes an on-board control system 102. The on-board control system 102 may be, for example, a train management computer, a processor, or any other like computing device for controlling one or more aspects of the locomotive and communicating with internal and/or external components of the train and/or railroad. The system also includes an EIC device 104, which may be, for example, a handheld terminal, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a laptop, or any other type of portable computing device usable by an EIC in a work zone. The EIC device 104 has installed thereon one or more software applications for enabling the device 104 to communicate with a BOS 106 and/or the on-board control system 102. The EIC device 104 may also include one or more software applications for facilitating the input of work zone instructions. The EIC may input work zone instructions through one or more graphical user interfaces having selectable options, such as one or more drop-down menus, radio buttons, text input fields, push buttons, graphical menus, icons, and/or the like.

With continued reference to FIG. 1, the BOS 106 includes one or more servers located remotely from the EIC device 104 and the locomotive 100. The BOS 106 is in communication with the EIC device 104 and the on-board control system 102. It will be appreciated that, in non-limiting embodiments of the present invention, communication may occur between the EIC device 104 and the on-board control system 102 with or without involvement of the BOS 106. As the locomotive 100 approaches a work zone, the locomotive 100 may transmit a request for work zone instructions (not shown in FIG. 1) to the EIC device 104 and/or the BOS 106. In response to receiving the request, either directly from the on-board control system 102 or the BOS 106, the EIC device 104 may transmit one or more work zone instruction messages 108 to the on-board control system 102 or the BOS 106. The EIC may manually cause the transmission of the one or more work zone instruction messages 108 or, in other embodiments, the EIC device 104 may automatically transmit the one or more work zone instruction messages 108 in response to receiving the request. Further, it will be appreciated that, in some non-limiting embodiments, the EIC device 104 may transmit one or more work zone instructions 108 without receiving a request or waiting for a request. In such examples, the EIC device 104 may determine that a train is approaching via information made available from the BOS 106 or other alerts and/or messages and either prompt the EIC to transmit one or more work zone instruction messages 108 or automatically transmit the same.

Still referring to FIG. 1, the work zone instruction message(s) 108 may be received by the on-board control system 102 or, in other embodiments, the message(s) 108 may be received by the BOS 106 and converted to one or more transformed work zone instruction messages 110 which are then transmitted to the on-board control system 102. The BOS 106 may convert a work zone instruction message 108 by determining a data format of the on-board control system 102 and converting the data within the message 108 to the data format that is readable or compatible with the on-board control system 102. For example, the BOS 106 may extract work zone instruction parameters from the message 108 and transform the parameters to a track data framework that is associated with the on-board control system 102 of the train.

With continued reference to FIG. 1, once the on-board control system 102 receives a work zone instruction message (either the original work zone instruction message 108 or a transformed work zone instruction message 110), it extracts work zone instruction parameters from the message and generates a visual diagram and/or textual instructions based on the extracted parameters. It will be appreciated that the visual diagram and/or textual instructions may be generated in any number of ways based on data available to the on-board control system 102 including, for example, PTC data, track data, and/or the like. The visual diagram may be any type of graphical data such as, but not limited to, a digital image file (e.g., a JPG, PNG, GIF, etc.), vector data, and/or other data representative of a visual diagram. The on-board control system 102 then transmits a visual diagram and/or textual instructions 112 to the EIC device 104, either directly or indirectly through the BOS 106. The visual diagram and/or textual instructions may also be transformed by the BOS 106, resulting in a transformed visual diagram and/or textual instructions 114. The visual diagram and/or textual instructions are then received by the EIC device 104, which may prompt the user (the EIC, for example) to approve or reject them through one or more graphical user interfaces.

The EIC may determine that the visual diagram and/or textual instructions do not match the intention of the EIC and/or the work zone instruction message for various reasons, such as a data entry error by the EIC, a communication error, a translation error, a configuration error in which the instruction message does not match the track framework used by the on-board system, a configuration error in which track data does not match, and/or other like errors that may occur within the system 1000. Further, in non-limiting embodiments, the EIC device 104 may include one or more software applications for automatically verifying the visual diagram and/or textual instructions by analyzing the visual diagram and/or parsing the textual instructions to identify parameters that can be compared to parameters associated with the inputted work zone instructions.

Still referring to FIG. 1, if the EIC approves of the visual diagram and/or textual instructions 112, the EIC then, through the EIC device 104, transmits an approval signal 116 to the on-board control system 102, either directly or indirectly through the BOS 106. In response to receiving the approval signal 116, the on-board control system may enforce the instructions from the work zone instruction message that are depicted in the visual diagram and explained by the textual instructions. Such enforcement may be automatic in response to receiving an approval signal 116 or may be initiated by the operator of the train. If the EIC rejects the visual diagram and/or textual instructions 112, a rejection signal may be transmitted to the on-board control system 102. In other non-limiting embodiments, instead of or in addition to sending a rejection signal, the EIC may transmit one or more new or updated work zone instruction messages to the on-board control system 102. In this manner, the process can be repeated until a visual diagram and/or textual instructions are approved and the instructions enforced by the on-board control system 102.

The work zone instruction message may include various fields representative of parameters that can be used by the on-board control system to control movement of the train within and approaching the limits of a designated work zone. For example, the work zone instruction parameters may specify work zone limits, work zone speed restrictions, work zone routing, and/or any other like information concerning operation of the train within a work zone. Moreover, a work zone instruction message may include multiple messages packaged together or transmitted separately. In some non-limiting embodiments, a work zone instruction message includes a header for identifying the source and/or intended destination for a message. The work zone instruction message may also include freeform text inputted by the EIC. It will be appreciated that the work zone instruction message may include data arranged in any manner in one or more data structures of any type.

Referring now to FIG. 2A, a schematic diagram of a system 1000 for verifying railroad work zone instructions is shown according to another preferred and non-limiting embodiment. In the depicted example, the work zone instruction message 108 transmitted by the EIC device 104 is first received by the BOS 106. The BOS 106 then transforms the work zone instruction message into a transformed work zone instruction message 110 that is transmitted to and received by the on-board control system 102. In the example shown in FIG. 2A, the visual diagram and/or textual instructions are transmitted from the on-board control system 102 to the EIC device 104 without involvement of the BOS 106 Likewise, the approval signal 116 is also transmitted from the EIC device 104 to the on-board control system 102 without involvement of the BOS 106.

Referring now to FIG. 2B, a schematic diagram of a system 1000 for verifying railroad work zone instructions is shown according to a further preferred and non-limiting embodiment. In this depicted example, the work zone instruction message 108 is transmitted by the EIC device 104 to the on-board control system 102 without involvement of the BOS. Likewise, and as shown in the example of FIG. 2A, the visual diagram and/or textual instructions and the approval signal are also transmitted without involvement of the BOS. It will be appreciated that any communication path may be used for one or more of the communications that occur between the EIC device 104 and the on-board control system 102.

FIG. 3A shows a sequence diagram for a system and method for verifying railroad work zone instructions according to a non-limiting embodiment. In particular, FIG. 3A illustrates a sequence diagram in which communications between the EIC device 104 and the on-board control system 102 are routed through and/or modified by the BOS 106. At step s1, a request for work zone instructions is communicated from the on-board system 102 to the BOS 106. At step s2, the BOS communicates the request to the EIC device 104. At step s3, the EIC device 104 returns the instructions to the BOS 106. At step s4, the BOS 106 transforms the track limits into a format for the on-board control system 102 and, at step s5, the BOS 106 communicates the transformed instructions to the on-board control system 102. At step s6, the on-board control system 102 generates a visual diagram and/or a textual description from the transformed instructions. At step s7, the visual diagram and/or textual description are communicated to the BOS 106. The BOS 106, at step s8, communicates the visual diagram and/or textual description to the EIC device 104. At step s9, the EIC device 104 accepts an approval or rejection of the visual diagram and/or textual description from an EIC. At step s10, the approval or rejection is communicated to the BOS 106 which, at step s11, communicates the approval or rejection to the on-board control system 102. It will be appreciated that additional or fewer steps may take place.

FIG. 3B illustrates a sequence diagram according to a non-limiting embodiment in which communications between the EIC device 104 and the on-board control system 102 are not routed through or modified by the BOS 106. At step s1, a request for work zone instructions is communicated from the on-board system 102 to the EIC device 104. At step s2, the EIC device communicates work zone instructions to the on-board control system 102. At step s3, the on-board control system 102 generates a visual diagram and/or a textual description from the instructions. At step s4, the visual diagram and/or textual description are communicated to the EIC device 104. At step s5, the EIC device 104 accepts an approval or rejection of the visual diagram and/or textual description from an EIC. At step s6, the approval or rejection is communicated to the on-board control system 102. It will be appreciated that additional or fewer steps may take place.

FIG. 4 illustrates a visual diagram 400 according to a preferred and non-limiting embodiment. The visual diagram 400 may represent one or more parameters of the work zone instructions and/or other train data available to the on-board control system, such as work zone limits, direction of train travel, speed restrictions, track segments, and/or the like. In the non-limiting example shown in FIG. 4, the visual diagram 400 includes a visual representation of one or more tracks, milepost markers (e.g., “35.000,” “35.200,” “35.400,” “37.800,” “38.000,” and “39.000”), speed restrictions (e.g., “RST,” “15,” “10”), direction of travel, and work zone limits. It will be appreciated that the visual diagram 400 may be represented in any number of ways. In some examples, the visual diagram 400 may be interactive such that information can be selectively displayed, expanded, enlarged, and/or the like.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a flow diagram of a method of verifying railroad work zone instructions is shown according to a preferred and non-limiting embodiment. At a first step 500, work zone instruction parameters are received by an EIC device. The work zone instruction parameters may be received via user input through one or more graphical user interfaces on the EIC device, may be received by the EIC device from a separate device or system, or may be received in any other manner. At step 502, the on-board control system requests work zone instructions. As an example, the on-board control system may detect an upcoming work zone and, in response, transmit a request that is receivable by an EIC device or a BOS.

With continued reference to FIG. 5, a work zone instruction message is transmitted to the on-board control system at step 504. The work zone instruction message may be transmitted in response to a request, at regular intervals, in response to detecting an approaching locomotive, or in any other manner. Further, the work zone instruction message may be transmitted to the on-board control system directly or, in other examples, may be transmitted to a BOS where the work zone instruction message may be modified, translated, transformed, converted, and/or processed so as to be compatible and/or readable by the on-board control system. As an example, the BOS may transform the work zone instruction message based on a track framework associated with the on-board control system. At step 506, the work zone instruction message is received by the on-board control system.

Still referring to FIG. 5, the on-board control system generates at least one visual diagram and/or textual instructions at step 508 based at least partially on work zone instruction parameters from the work zone instruction message. Then, at step 510, the at least one visual diagram is transmitted to the EIC device from the on-board control system. In some examples, the at least one visual diagram may be transmitted to a BOS and then to the EIC device. Once the EIC device receives the at least one visual diagram at step 511, it may prompt the EIC to approve or reject the same at step 512. If the at least one visual diagram is approved, the method may proceed to step 514 in which the work zone instructions are enforced by the on-board control system. If the at least one visual diagram is rejected at step 512, the method may proceed back to step 500 where the EIC inputs work zone instruction parameters again or modifies the parameters and/or other aspects of the work zone instruction message. The method then repeats until at least one diagram generated by the on-board control system is approved and the work zone instructions are enforced.

Although the invention has been described in detail for the purpose of illustration based on what is currently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that such detail is solely for that purpose and that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover modifications and equivalent arrangements that are within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. For example, it is to be understood that the present invention contemplates that, to the extent possible, one or more features of any embodiment can be combined with one or more features of any other embodiment. 

The invention claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: receiving, by the on-board system of the train, at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification, enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises at least one track diagram and textual instructions.
 3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein generating the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises: extracting, by the on-board system, a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message; and converting, by the on-board system of the train, the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to the visual instruction diagram.
 4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction is received from a back office system, and wherein the back office system receives the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the back office system, after receiving the at least one electronic work zone instruction message, extracts a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message and transforms the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to a track data framework associated with the on-board system of the train.
 6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message comprises at least one of the following work zone instruction parameters: work zone limits, a work zone speed restriction, a work zone route, or any combination thereof.
 7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device comprises transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system to a back office system, and transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the back office system to the employee-in-charge device.
 8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the employee-in-charge device comprises a handheld or portable computer.
 9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising requesting, by the on-board system of the train, the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message is transmitted by the employee-in-charge device in response to the request.
 10. A computer-implemented method for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: receiving, by the on-board system of the train, at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram or at least one new electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification or the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message: (i) enforcing at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train if the verification is received; or (ii) generating, by the on-board system of the train, at least one new visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message if the rejection is received.
 11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message is received, the method further comprising: (a) transmitting the new visual instruction diagram from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device; (b) receiving, by the on-board system of the train, a verification of the new visual instruction diagram or at least one new electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device; and (c) in response to receiving the verification or the at least one further electronic work zone instruction message: (i) enforcing the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train if the verification is received; or (ii) generating, by the on-board system of the train, a new visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the at least one new electronic work zone instruction message.
 12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, further comprising repeating steps (a)-(c) until at least one electronic work zone instruction message is enforced by the on-board system of the train.
 13. A system for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising: (a) an on-board control system arranged on at least one locomotive of a train, the on-board control system comprising at least one processor programmed or configured to: (i) receive at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; (ii) generate a visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; (iii) transmit the visual instruction diagram to the employee-in-charge device; (iv) receive, by the on-board system of the train, a verification or a rejection of the visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and (v) in response to receiving a verification, enforce the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train.
 14. The system of claim 13, further comprising: (b) the employee-in-charge device comprising at least one portable computing device including at least one processor programmed or configured to: (i) receive user input; (ii) generate the work zone instruction message based on the user input; (iii) receive the visual instruction diagram from the on-board control system; (iv) display the visual instruction diagram; and (v) receive the approval or the rejection.
 15. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one visual instruction diagram comprises at least one track diagram and textual instructions.
 16. The system of claim 13, wherein the on-board control system is further programmed or configured to: extract a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message; and generate the at least one visual instruction diagram by converting the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to the at least one visual instruction diagram.
 17. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction is received from a back office system, and wherein the back office system receives the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the back office system, after receiving the at least one electronic work zone instruction message, extracts a plurality of work zone instruction parameters from the electronic work zone instruction message and transforms the plurality of work zone instruction parameters to a track data framework associated with the on-board system of the train.
 19. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message comprises at least one of the following work zone instruction parameters: work zone limits, a work zone speed restriction, a work zone route, or any combination thereof.
 20. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one visual instruction diagram is transmitted from the on-board system of the train to the employee-in-charge device by transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the on-board system to a back office system, and transmitting the at least one visual instruction diagram from the back office system to the employee-in-charge device.
 21. The system of claim 13, wherein the employee-in-charge device comprises a handheld or portable computer.
 22. The system of claim 13, wherein the on-board control system is further programmed or configured to request the at least one electronic work zone instruction message from the employee-in-charge device, wherein the at least one electronic work zone instruction message is transmitted by the employee-in-charge device in response to the request.
 23. A computer program product for verifying electronic work zone instructions with an on-board system of a train, comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions that, when executed by the on-board system of the train, cause the on-board system to: receive at least one electronic work zone instruction message from an employee-in-charge device; generate at least one visual instruction diagram based at least partially on the electronic work zone instruction message; transmit the at least one visual instruction diagram to the employee-in-charge device; receive a verification of the at least one visual instruction diagram from the employee-in-charge device; and in response to receiving the verification, enforce at least one work zone instruction parameter of the electronic work zone instruction message by the on-board system of the train. 